Kensington Palace Releases a Statement About Meghan Markle's Father, Thomas Markle, Ahead of the Royal Wedding

“This is a deeply personal moment"

Meghan Markle's father, Thomas Markle, will not attend his daughter's royal wedding to Prince Harry on May 19, and Kensington Palace has spoken out about the headline-making drama.

“This is a deeply personal moment for Ms. Markle in the days before her wedding,” a Kensington Palace spokesman said in a statement on Monday, May 14, per Us Weekly. “She and Prince Harry ask again for understanding and respect to be extended to Mr. Markle in this difficult situation.”

Thomas Markle reportedly will no longer attend the royal wedding after he was accused of staging paparazzi photos of himself "getting ready" for the big event—doing things like getting a suit tailored and reading a book on British landmarks. The Internet seemed to agree that the photos initially seemed sweet, until the Daily Mail published security video footage that appears to show Thomas, 73, teaming up with paparazzo Jeff Rayner to allegedly stage them. The publication estimates that he may have gotten a payout of over $100,000, but other reports claim it was actually much less.

Thomas Markle also reportedly suffered a heart attack last week, but that is not the reason he won't be in attendance the royal wedding. Instead, he's said he doesn't want to cause any further embarrassment for the royal family, according to Us Weekly.

Samantha Markle, Meghan's half-sister and author of the not-yet-released tell-all The Diary of Princess Pushy's Sister, has taken full responsibility for their father's actions. “Meghan is disappointed that her father hasn’t spoken up and stopped his children from trashing her in the press,” a source told Us Weekly. “Instead, she sees his collaboration with Samantha, who Meghan feels he is much closer to, and it hurts her.”

Understandably, Meghan is “upset and disturbed by the entire ordeal and just wants to move past it,” the source said. “She doesn’t want to let anything ruin her day and is trying to keep focus on the weekend." Her father was supposed to walk her down the aisle, though it's now unclear who will fill in.